At The Beginning
by kiminicricket
Summary: A collection of one shots from Dimitri's point of view. Based on the 1997 animated movie. not in chronological order. Beware the fluff :)
1. Dancing on the Deck

I stared down at the game board, trying to figure out how Vlad had outsmarted me in a matter of minutes when his exclamation of 'wonderful!' startled me out of my reverie.

Vlad rose from his chair, arms outstretched towards Anya, who had put on the dress we got for her. I turned slowly and took in her appearance.

Gone was the oversized, ragged tunic that she had been wearing until now. The blue dress we had selected fit her perfectly, falling gently over womanly curves, and clinging to the slim span of her waist. I dragged my eyes up to her face and noticed she had even done her hair and applied a small amount of makeup.

She twirled around and the skirts of her dress flared out slightly with the movement.

I was enchanted. I couldn't look away. I slowly, stupidly rose from my chair, blinking a couple of times and trying to regain control of my heart, which had jumped into my throat and started beating a million miles an hour at the sight of her and didn't seem to want to go back down to where it belonged.

Good heavens I wasn't _attracted_ to her was I?

I wasn't given much time to sort that thought out, as just then Vlad grabbed me by the elbow and dragged me over to her.

"You are dressed for a ball, and now you must learn to dance for one!" he was saying to Anya.

Me? Dance?

"I'm not very good at it," I said apologetically as I stood in front of Anya.

Surprisingly she didn't make a snarky comment or laugh at me, in fact, she looked just as nervous as I felt. I cleared my throat and took one of her hands in mine, placing my other at her waist. It was so soft and she felt so delicate in my arms that I didn't even notice we had started dancing already until Vlad's voice interrupted.

"No no no Anya, you don't lead, let him," he said, gesturing to me.

We had dropped our arms as he said this and so now, slowly took them up again. I took a deep breath and we started moving, my brain again fixated on how wonderful she felt to hold in my arms.

_Concentrate!_ I chided myself, and thought to distract myself from the feel of her in my arms by conversation.

"That, uh, dress is really beautiful," I said the first thing that popped into my head.

_Idiot! Complement her, not the dress! _ I thought to myself with an inward grimace.

She looked up at me in surprise

"You think so?" she asked. I smiled warmly.

''Yes, it was lovely on the hanger, but it looks even better on you,"

_Nice save!_

"You should wear it!"

_Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!_

"I am wearing it!" she said with a smile as she twirled out and then back into me.

"Right, of course, of course, I'm sorry, I'm just trying to give you a.."

Big blue eyes stared up at me expectantly and I lost my train of thought.

"Compliment?" she ventured when I trailed off.

"Right, of course, of course," I agreed. What were we talking about? I gave up on the idea of conversation and just concentrated on not stepping on her feet while gazing into her beautiful blue eyes.

I could hear Vlad singing to himself as we twirled around the deck, the sun setting and casting glorious colors through the sky, and I wondered to myself how I had not noticed before now how beautiful she was. True she had spent most of the trip in a dowdy, torn, oversized tunic and her hair up in a messy ponytail, but her eyes, her big blue eyes that were mesmerizing me had not changed. Nor had the gentle curve of her cheek, or the tantalizing redness of her lips. Why was I just now noticing these things?

I subconsciously tightened my grip on her waist as we twirled around the deck.

"I'm feeling a little… dizzy…" she said, tentatively, breaking the silence, but not breaking the eye contact we had been maintaining while dancing.

We slowed our movements to gentle swaying.

"Kind of lightheaded?" my voice came out low and husky. She stared up at me with wide, beguiling eyes and I inched ever so slightly closer to her.

"Probably from the spinning," I said as we stopped completely. I held her hands in my own for a moment, not willing to lose contact with her completely.

"Maybe we should stop," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"We have stopped," those wide eyes were drawing me in again and I was so close now I could feel her breath tickling my lips, but she didn't pull away.

"Anya, I-"

I closed my eyes and started to close the short distance between our lips when Pooka growled and barked, drawing me out of my haze long enough for me to remember our purpose, our plan, our con. Feelings for Anya would do nothing but cause confusion and heartache later. I took a deep breath and shook my head a little before clearing my throat.

"You are doing fine," I said lamely, already feeling like a coward and a cad as I patted her shoulder and rushed below deck to our room.

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><p>KC<p>

Please review


	2. The Princess and the Kitchen Boy

Vlad and I were waiting outside the theatre, Vlad pacing back and forth, waiting for the ladies, me in a bit of a funk, as I had ben ever since Anya had proved to me once and for all that she was actually the missing princess Anastasia.

Firstly I was thrilled! This was supposed to be a con, but we had actually done it! We had found her! The reward money was ours for the taking! I could get on with my life and so could Vlad. No more living in the abandoned palace with the cold draughts at night, no more whispered words when we walked the streets of the market place. I would have enough money to go somewhere new, to start over, to be someone different.

Then I looked over at Anya, sitting there with a nostalgic, faraway look on her face as she sat on the couch in Sophies living room and my heart clenched at all she had been through. She had been alone and confused and raised in the poverty of a children's home, and all the while she had been the princess. She had missed out on a life of privilege and a grandmother who loved and missed her every day since that chaotic one where they fled the palace while her family had been slaughtered. I knew what it was like to long for a family, and I ached that she had had to go through that.

Then it hit me. She wouldn't need me anymore. She would be in paris, her destination, and she would have found her family, who she had been looking for and longing for her whole life. I would fade to a memory. Possibly a fond memory, but probably an annoying one. If she remembered me at all in the new life that she was about to embark on.

Sure I had hoped that after this was all over, we might stay close, keep in contact, see what might transpire, but that was before I knew she was the actual princess.

I felt a shrinking feeling inside of me. it was all but over, I knew it. She would go on to live her life, and I would go on to live mine, but not together. There was no way. A memory came back to me...

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><p><em>I just wanted a peek. Just one look. Gustav was busy with the dishes and wasn't paying attention when I managed to sneak out and make my way down the hall to where the sounds of the festivities has been taunting me all evening. I peeked through the curtain, but the towering thrones blocked my view of the party, so I cautiously, silently, made my way through the curtains and peeked around.<em>

_I took in the party in silent awe. The chandelier that hung from the ceiling glittering brightly and illuminating the gaily dressed dignitaries in attendance. The paintings on the wall were beautiful, but had nothing on the finery that the guests were decked out in while dancing on the ballroom floor._

_There was one girl in particular who stole my attention. She had glistening red curls, bright, dancing blue eyes and an infectious smile. A silly grin grew on my face and a foreign feeling warmed my chest. She was dancing with the emperor, him lifting her up and swirling her in a circle while she giggled and threw her arms out wide, trusting him completely._

_The emperor set her down, and she rushed up to the thrones. Thinking I had been spotted, I shrank down behind them, heart thudding in my chest for fear of being caught. But she didn't come around and expose me. Instead, she flew into the dowager empresses arms, ecstatically exchanging conversation with the old woman._

_Regaining my courage, I peeked out again, watching in fascination as they exchanged a gift._

_I was so caught up in watching them that I didn't notice one of the guards until he had me caught in his burly arms._

_"This party is no place for a kitchen boy!" he said as I struggled to free myself and maintain some dignity while being carted off to the kitchens again. However his grip was too strong, and he kept hold of me until I had been deposited back into the kitchen and under the watchful eyes of Gustav._

_Gustav thanked the guard, who promptly left, then turned to me with a twinkle in his eye._

_"See some of the festivities did you son?" he questioned, wiggling one of his bushy eyebrows._

_He wasn't angry with me, I could tell. Relief filled me and a sappy half grin rose on my face._

_"Yeah," I muttered, absently taking the dish towel Gustav was holding out for me and moving to dry some of the dishes that were stacked by the sink, my thoughts centered on the girl who had been dancing with the emperor._

_"Gustav, who is the girl with the red curls and blue eyes?" truth be told, that could have been describing any number of girls, so I clarified, "she was dancing with the emperor."_

_Gustav elbowed me conspiratorially, "Take a fancy to her did you?" he chuckled teasingly._

_"No," I muttered, eyes keenly on the pot I was drying, but my bright red face must have given me away, for Gustavs chuckles turned into full blown laughter._

_"Best be happy with the look you got son! That would have been the youngest princess, Anastasia"_

_"Anastasia," I said slowly, testing the name. It was a little lengthy, she could probably use a nickname, but overall, I liked it._

_"That's 'Your Highness' to you lad," Gustav pointed a soapy, dripping spatula at me, "princesses don't marry kitchen boys and thats the truth of it."_

_Without further ado, Gustav turned back to the sink to finish scrubbing the dishes. wordlessly, I turned to help._

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><p>Vlad's muttering pulled me out of my memories and back to the present. He was worried about Anya meeting the Dowager Empress. I knew that he had nothing to worry about, so I tried to get his attention.<p>

"Vlad!"

No response.

"Vlad, she is the princess!" I tried, a bit louder.

He continued muttering to himself.

"Vlad!" I all but shouted. He turned, surprised, to look at me. "We don't have anything to worry about, she IS the princess."

He looked at me, slightly stupefied, "but how.." _do you know?_ The question remained unspoken, but I could see it in his eyes.

I sighed and admitted, "I was the boy."

Understanding lit Vlad's features, then hope, "that means that our Anya has found her family!" he said triumphantly. His expression softened as he turned to me, "and you.."

"Will walk out of her life forever." I said with finality, smiling mirthlessly at the memory of a young me, imagining the reward I might get for saving her life when I guided her and the empress through the servants passageway. Instead I had been knocked unconscious and she had gone missing. Not exactly happily ever after material.

"Dimitri.." Vlad's voice rang with disappointment and reproach.

I held up my hand, halting whatever he had been about to say.

"Princesses don't marry kitchen boys."

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><p>KC<p> 


	3. Attraction

I stared at the infuriating redhead through the compartment window. I struggled to understand how one woman could so easily get under my skin and irritate me. Sure she looked like the princess, but did she have to act all high and mighty all the time? Like with the dog! Why did the mutt have to come along? What if I was allergic to dogs? I'm not, but that's beside the point.

I watched her for a moment, her slender fingers holding a book that her head was gracefully bent over, her hair a riotous mess atop her head, and her face – uncannily like that of the princess Anastasia – filled with intrigue and concentration as she read.

I sighed. It was going to be a long trip to Paris. It would be better if we were getting along for it. I took a deep breath and entered the compartment, sitting down across from her.

My resolve to smooth things over weakened considerably when she didn't even pause in her reading to acknowledge my presence. Anger boiled in my stomach, but I was determined to get through this. I cleared my throat and began.

"Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot,"

She barely paused, glancing at me briefly with those big blue eyes over the top of her book.

"I think we did too." Back she went to her reading.

Well at least that was something. I was about to go on, but she popped back up again before I could gather my wits.

"But I appreciate your apology."

I sat back in my seat, stunned. I was not one to condone violence, especially against women, but a strong desire to throttle this particular one rose in me.

"Apology? Who said anything about an apology?" I snapped instead. I couldn't believe the nerve of this girl. Here we were, Vlad and I, helping her out, getting her to Paris, and is she thankful? Clearly not.

Her lovely face contorted into an impatient scowl

"Please, just stop talking! You're only going to upset me!" she demanded.

I could hardly believe my ears!

"Fine, I'll stop talking if you stop talking."

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

We sat fuming in petulant silence for a moment, she staring out the window at the passing countryside, and me slowly counting to ten, trying to regain control of my temper.

I had only got to six, and was nowhere near in control when she spoke again.

"Do you think you will miss it?" she asked, a faraway sound in her voice.

"Miss what, you're talking?" I snapped back, my temper still raw and itching for a fight.

"No," she said emphatically, "Russia."

"Oh," the fight left me as I took in her anxious face, and it dawned on me, that though she tried to hide it behind sarcasm and wit, she was nervous about leaving behind the security of the things she knew. I felt a slight softening towards her within me. she was probably just acting out because she was scared.

"No." I eventually said in reply. This almost non-answer apparently piqued her interest, or maybe she just knew I didn't want to talk about it, because she leaned forward.

"But it was your home," there was a question in the way she said it.

Home. What did that word even mean?

"It was a place I once lived," I hoped the finality in my voice would give her a hint. I didn't want to talk about homes and families and other such things that I had no knowledge of. I set my feet on the chair in front of me and turned to face out the other window, avoiding her gaze.

She wouldn't let it go though.

"Then you must intend to make Paris your new home," she reasoned.

No. Yes. Maybe.

"What is it with you and homes?" I didn't try to hide the impatience from my voice. She had pushed the issue when I clearly didn't want to talk about it.

"Well for one thing," she said defensively, rising to the challenge she had heard in my voice, "its something that every _normal_ person wants." She rose to leave, but my legs stretched out to the chair across blockaded the exit. I watched with not a little smugness as she tried to budge my legs. She tried pushing, shoving, pulling, and was getting very heated about it. I quietly enjoyed watching her get all worked up over it.

"And for another- OH FORGET IT!" she exclaimed, climbing up onto the chair to get around me just as Vlad entered the compartment with that confounded mutt.

"Thank goodness its you!" Anya exclaimed dramatically, "remove this man from my sight at once!" she gestured to me before saving him the trouble, and storming out of the compartment and stalking off down the hall.

Vlad leveled me with a glare.

"What did you do to her?" he asked.

My defenses rose.

"Me? I didn't do anything! She-"

Vlad's expression lit with understanding.

"Ah, an unspoken attraction!"

My heart thudded painfully in my chest.

"Attraction!" I sputtered, hardly believing Vlad's sanity at this moment, "to that skinny little-"

I shook my head and left the compartment also, careful to go the opposite direction to what Anya had gone. We could hardly be in the same space for ten minutes before we started bickering. I stalked to the end of the carriage, to the windows. I suddenly needed some air. Attraction indeed.

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><p>KC<p>

Please Review :)


	4. The Music Box

I sat bolt upright on my pallet in the servant's quarters in the palace, unsure what had woken me. I lay down to go back to sleep when I heard it again.

A woman screaming.

Pounding footsteps getting closer and closer.

All of a sudden the door burst open and a frantic woman rushed through.

"They've burst through! They're coming!" she was crying.

Sleepy servants stared at her, uncomprehending as they tried to decipher what she meant.

All of a sudden, a roar of humanity could be heard and we knew exactly what she meant.

The unrest in the city had been growing worse and worse in recent weeks, and it appeared that the people had stormed the palace.

Suddenly wide-awake, I leapt off my pallet and into some presentable clothes, thinking only about _her_ and making sure she got out safely.

I raced through hallways, checking rooms for her, dodging panicking servants and determined guards preparing their ammunitions.

The palace was utter chaos when I finally found her, following her grandmother, but heading towards an exit that I could see was surrounded by ruffians waiting to pounce on the next unsuspecting persons to walk through.

I caught up to them, grabbing Anastasia's hand, an act I am sure would normally have been frowned heavily upon. She stopped and looked at me with a bewildered expression on her face, her stopping causing the Dowager Empress to stop and turn also.

"Come out the servants quarters!" I beckoned them to follow me, knowing that the invaders had not, and probably would not waste time, going through the servant's quarters. There was a tunnel that leads right out to the marketplace. I knew if I could just get them there safely that we would make it out.

We rushed along the passageways towards the secret passage, Anastasias hand still in mine as they followed me.

My young heart pounded as I imagined the rewards they might offer me for saving their lives.

Riches, title, Anastasia's hand in marriage.

I shook the thoughts off though, and focused on getting them to safety.

We ducked into the servants quarters, and their eyes widened as I opened a section of the wall, revealing the tunnel that would help them escape. The Empress rushed through without hesitation, Anastasia close on her heels. I was following right behind when she suddenly whirled around and reached for something she had dropped.

"My music box!" she cried.

I pushed her back towards the tunnel though, my mind ever on the danger lurking the halls, looking for this girl.

"Go!" I urged, "I'll get it for you!"

Time stopped for half a moment as her blue eyes met mine for the first time ever, her serious expression reading mine. Then she acquiesced and disappeared through the tunnel.

I barely had time to shut the portal behind them when the doors to the room opened and people swarmed in, overturning furniture and pointing their guns at me.

I grabbed the first thing I could reach to have something to defend myself with, but before I could wield it, I was struck by the butt of someone's rifle. I struggled to remain conscious, but the world went black.

I opened my eyes sometime later. The palace was eerily silent and the world was dark. I lifted my pounding head and the first thing I saw was the item Anastasia had dropped. It was a small gold and emerald box. I grabbed it, stuffing it in my pocket before quickly scurrying out the passageway.

I'm not sure if I expected them to still be in the passageway, or to be somewhere where I could catch up to them. Maybe I half expected them to wait for me, but it was eventually clear to me that they did not, and with a heavy heart, I returned to my pallet in the abandoned servants quarters.

I pulled the small box out of my pockets, turning it over and over in my hands as I fought the panic rising within me as I thought through my situation. What was I going to do now? Where was I going to go? I was all alone for the second time in my life, and this time my options were significantly reduced. My breathing sped up until it was almost uncontrollable, and I could feel, and was desperately fighting, the tears building up behind my closed eyelids.

Footsteps in the hallway made me draw my knees up to my chest and hug them tight, fear pounding through my body and making it difficult for me to breath. I huddled right into the corner and tried to make myself especially small, but my labored breathing I could not quiet, no matter the intense instructions I kept giving my lungs.

The door swung open, and I gasped in fright, squeezing my eyes shut and bracing myself for whatever was about to happen.

"Sophie?" a voice called. I squinted one eye partially open and saw a bedraggled man in the doorway, about to turn and leave, not having found who he was looking for.

"Sophie," he said again, his voice cracking with despair.

My guard slowly lowered as I realised this man was not dangerous, and Anastasias box, which I had been clenching in my fists, dropped to the floor as I relaxed some.

I tensed right back up though, when the sound of the box clanging to the floor brought his attention back to the room.

He quickly wiped his eyes and peered at me.

I sat silently, staring up at him.

"Well what do we have here?" he asked gently, coming to kneel down beside me.

"Whats your name son?"

I stared up at him, not quite sure whether to answer him or not.

"It's all right lad, my name is Vladimir, but you can call me Vlad if you like," he continued on, his voice and demeanor slowly chipping away at the wall of fear that was silencing me.

He held out his hand for me to shake, and I slowly took it.

"I'm Dimitri," I offered quietly, my voice shaking some.

"Dimitri," he repeated, "that's a fine name son."

Vlad grabbed the box that I had dropped on the floor, studying it for a moment before holding it out to me. I reached out eagerly and quickly put the box in my pocket.

"Don't worry son, I won't leave you here alone, we'll figure something out." he said, rubbing the back of his neck and looking around the abandoned quarters.

I stared up at this kind man, thanking the Lord in Heaven for sending him right when I was about to give in to panic and despair. Maybe with Vlad's help I could find her and get this box back to her. I looked up at his face and for the first time since I had woken up, I felt a sliver of hope that things might still work out.

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><p>KC<p> 


	5. The Storm

I lay staring up at the ceiling of the basic cabin we were staying in as the huge ship gently rocked with the waves, reliving the last hour over and over in my head and calling myself all sorts of an idiot for the way I'd acted on the deck.

Dammit, why did she have to be so freaking _captivating_? I had interviewed hundreds of women to play the role of Anastasia, knowing that really, none of them would ever quite measure up, but then we found Anya. Her fiery spirit, sarcasm, and stubbornness made her both infuriating and the most interesting woman I had ever met.

It didn't end there though. Under her sarcasm and stubbornness was a deeply caring soul, a person who looked out for you, even when she didn't particularly like you. She could think outside the square. I chuckled quietly to myself as I recalled the train fiasco when she had handed me a stick of dynamite, and the way she had reached out, without hesitation, to grab me when I had fallen, quickly saving me from almost certain death. Sure she had brushed off the whole thing, making some comment about how she could have let me go, but I knew that she wouldn't have. She wasn't that kind of person.

But if you looked even deeper than that, there was a lost young woman, whose vulnerability pierced me in a way that no-one had ever pierced me before. An orphan searching for her family, like I had been searching for mine when I was a boy.

An ache filled my heart as I recalled how my search had ended, and I prayed to whoever would listen that Anya's search would have a happier ending than mine did.

Pooka's growl out in the corridor interrupted my maudlin thoughts, and I quickly rolled over to face the wall. I heard Vlad and Anya come into our cabin, but unable to face Anya after our almost kiss I pretended to be asleep. I drowned out their chitchat and eventually, pretend sleep turned into the actual thing...

_We were dancing again, the sun casting an orange glow on the deck, the sea looked more like clouds than actual sea, and there was music, beautiful music._

_Anya smiled adoringly up at me as I held her close, our gazes locked on each other, not noticing anything else around us. We swung around the ship as though we had been dancing for years together. I pressed a kiss to her brow, wanting nothing more than to take her lips with my own and hold her against me and never let her go._

_All of a sudden though, the setting sun disappeared and angry black clouds filled the sky, blackening everything, but lightning irregularly lighting so that I could see the joy leave her face, and stark terror take its place._

"_DIMITRI!" She called out for me._

_She was across the other side of the ship, how had she got to the other side of the ship?_

_I reached out, my feet not moving, though I willed with everything in me to move to her, to hold her and calm her fears._

"_DIMITRI!"_

_A huge wave crashed over the side, sweeping her off the deck just as lightning flashed and thunder rumbled, only the thunder rumble sounded significantly like a dog bark… like Pooka barking.._

_Pooka?_

I opened bleary eyes to indeed find Pooka growling and barking at me. I looked over at the bunks and my heart slammed in my chest, Anya's bed was empty, and judging by the sharp rocking of the ship, the storm that I had dreamed was actually a reality. The image of Anya being swept overboard was fresh in my mind as I sprang to my feet and crashed out into the corridor, racing up the stairs to the deck.

The storm was raging. There were waves crashing over the ship, and I couldn't see anything.

"ANYA!" I called, knowing she probably wouldn't hear me in the fury, but desperate to find her.

The wind howling was my only response.

"ANYA!" I called again. I made my way to the highest point of the ship so I could look out over the deck and find her. A wave crashed over me, but thankfully, only pushed me faster in the direction I wanted to go.

I climbed to the top, wiped some water out of my eyes and scanned the deck, my already pounding heart leaping to my throat when I spotted her, standing on the railing at the edge of the ship, one leg perched as though she was going to step off into the raging sea below.

I didn't even think, I grabbed the nearest rope and swung over to her, grabbing her just as she let go of the rope she was holding onto, and dragging her backwards towards safety.

She struggled against me, kicking out and pulling away.

I shook her, trying to get her to settle down when I realized her eyes were closed.

_Is she asleep? _I thought to myself incredulously.

I shook her again, and her eyes snapped open with a gasp. She stared past me and tears started streaming down her face. My heart clenched at the sight, but I was still trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

"Romanov curse? Faces, I see so many faces!" She buried her face into my chest and I froze, my thoughts clocking over a hundred miles an hour.

This couldn't happen! I couldn't lo-like Anya! She was part of our con! What part of liking her was going to get us the ten million rubles?

But then again, did liking Anya have to be so bad? Maybe we COULD cut her in on the reward money... Its not like she didn't deserve it. We could run away together, start a new life, but this time, I wouldn't be alone.

No. She couldn't know. If she were accepted as the princess she would have a brand new life and duties and responsibilities. There was no way she would be able to leave the allure of _that_ life, and she didn't need to have the lie hanging over her in that new life. It would be better for all involved if I forgot her and moved on.

But that didn't mean I couldn't enjoy this small moment right now. I closed my arms around her and felt her relax a smidgeon in my hold. I rested my cheek against the top of her head, allowing a small smile to grace my lips.

"You're safe now," I comforted her.

_Stay with me,_ I silently begged,_ I will keep you safe forever_.

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><p>AN:<p>

Hey guys, feel free to leave me a note with what you thought, and suggestions for the next scene I might have a go at :)

KC


	6. Intermission

"You wait here, and I'll go in and announce you properly,"

Her nervous eyes took in my confident face and she gave the tiniest of nods. I turned to enter the private balcony.

Her voice stopped me.

"Dimitri," she said.

I turned back so fast I nearly gave myself whiplash.

"Yes?" I responded hopefully. There was a glimmer of something in her eyes that was making my heart pound, and my mind hope.

She glanced off to the side and then back up to look into my eyes.

"Look, we've been through a lot together,"

I took a step closer, until I could almost feel her breath on my face.

"Uh huh," I agreed.

"And I just wanted to.." she trailed off.

"Yes?" my heart pounded with anticipation. Was she really about to say she felt the same way about me as I did her? She had always been braver than me; it wouldn't surprise me that she would say it first.

_Coward_. I thought disparagingly to myself.

"Well.." she looked down, "thank you, I guess." She looked back up at me, "yes, thank you for everything!"

No, that wasn't what she had originally intended to say. I could tell by the disappointed look in her eye, and the way she immediately turned from me.

"Oh," was all that came out of my mouth. I turned in disappointment.

_Don't be an idiot, just because she didn't say anything, doesn't mean you cant._

I turned back before I could change my mind or lose my courage.

"Anya, I-"

She turned as fast as I had.

"Yes?"

She was looking at me again, right into my eyes and it was making me lose my train of thought.

"I- Um, I… I'm"

_I'm in love with you. _My inner mind had no problems saying it

"Yes?"

_Spit it out Dimitri!_ I commanded myself, but one more look in her beautiful eyes and I knew I couldn't do it.

She was a princess, and I was a coward.

"I wanted to wish you good luck I guess"

"Oh," the word was breathed so quietly I nearly missed it. I sighed inwardly at myself, but figured it was for the best. Soon enough she would be reunited with her family and I would head back to St Petersburg.

I stuck out my hand. "Good luck,"

"Well, here goes," I went in to do what we came here for.

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><p>I hit the hallway floor with a thud, staring up at the navy hem of an evening gown before my eyes travelled up their length to Anya's shocked face.<p>

This was not how this was supposed to go.

"It was all a lie wasn't it," Anya stated.

I rushed to my feet.

"No! no, no no!" this could not be happening, how much had she heard?

"You used me? I was just part of your con to get her money?" betrayal burned in her eyes, as she clarified for me that she had heard every word. My heart sank right down to my toes. I closed my eyes briefly at my stupidity. Why had I not told her before that I was the boy who had opened the wall and she was the real princess? There was no way she was going to believe me now!

She didn't even wait for my answer, but started stalking down the hallway. I followed quickly, determined to fix this mess I had made.

"Look, it may have started out that way, but things changed, because you really are Anastasia, you ARE." I had to make her see. I had to.

"Oh stop it!" she turned and pushed me a little, I stumbled half a step back.

"From the very beginning you LIED! And I not only believed you, I-" she breathed a frustrated sigh and turned to continue down the hallway.

"Anya please, when you spoke of the little boy and the wall opening, listen to me, that was-"

"NO!" she cried out angrily. Tears standing in her eyes, though none had fallen down her cheeks, "I don't want to hear about anything I said or remembered with you!" she pushed me aside, but I was not easily dogged. This was bad, but I could fix it, I had to make her see, make her believe in herself. I grabbed her arm. She looked at my hand around her arm for half a second before raising her other arm to slap my face. Surprised, I let go, and she quickly maneuvered through the crowd. I lost her a few moments later.

* * *

><p>Angry – mostly with myself, I skipped the second half of the ballet.<p>

"You are an idiot!" I told myself, glad no one was around to witness me acting like an absolute fool, and having a conversation with myself.

"You could have told her right after she mentioned the wall, but you wanted to maintain your pretense," I kicked at one of the marble columns, but regretted that quickly as pain burst up my toe and foot.

"You could have been honest from the start, at the very least about the reward that you stood to earn."

I paused in my furious pacing. What Anya must think of me now.

Not that it would have mattered. If the empress had seen her she still would have been walking out of my life.. Just maybe with fonder memories.

I sighed and leaned against the wall, the look of her betrayed eyes looking into mine, searching for some reason to still believe in me and only finding guilt and shame playing over and over again in my head. I hung my head. I didn't deserve her.

Heels clicking on the concrete bought me out of my reverie, and I turned to see the empress walking towards her car.

My thoughts flew quickly along a new plan, and without putting too much thought into it, I moved towards the car myself, sliding into the drivers seat just as the real driver had shut the Empresses door.

This wouldn't fix things between Anya and I, I had screwed that up for good and ever, but maybe I could get the Empress to see that she was the real thing, and restore Anya to her family. I took off, maybe a little fast, but I was going to see this done.

* * *

><p>KC<p> 


	7. With You

The world was black, my head and side were throbbing, pounding as though a company of construction workers had taken up residence inside my body and decided to pound away until I could barely function due to the pain. I could hear a quiet whimpering beside me, and then a howl from a small mutt.

Pooka?

I groaned and lifted one arm slowly to my pounding head. Slowly the events of the evening were coming back to me.

Standing in line for the train ticket. Reaching in to grab some money and pulling out the rose instead. That moment of indecision before deciding I couldn't bear to leave things the way they were. Discovering Anya facing that rotting corpse on the bridge. And the fight with the demonized horse, which stopped me from going to Anya's aid.

Anya!

Groaning and still moving too slowly, I sat up, desperate to make sure that she was alright. I thought I had heard her voice before but-

"OW!" someone had just backhanded me across the face.

"Dimitri!" Anya exclaimed, throwing her arms around me. She was alright! She was ok! But oh! I wasn't!

"Ow ow ow! Lemme go!" I moaned as her momentum and weight brought into focus more parts of me that hurt. I leaned over grabbing my stomach as she released me, gasping.

"Oh! Sorry!" she cried, reaching out tentatively to touch me again before half withdrawing her hand.

"I know, I know," I ground out through clenched teeth, "all men are babies."

She said nothing, just stared at me as I gathered my strength and raised myself to my knees.

Of course, the concerned silence was not to last. But I knew what she was going to ask.

"I though you were going to-"

"I was," I cut in, staring her straight in the eye, willing her to see how I felt. Willing her to see the truth.

"You didn't take the-"

"I- couldn't," I replied haltingly. Her eyes stared into mine, reading me. I saw a faint pink tinge rise in her cheeks and awareness dawn in her eyes as we leaned closer to each other.

"Why?" she almost whispered it. Her hand had come up to rest on my shoulder, and mine had reached out to her waist, pulling her gently towards me.

"Because- I-"

This time she cut in on me, with one long slender finger gently placed against my lips, silencing the words that I was stumbling over anyway. My heart thundered in my chest as she leaned in towards me, closing the short distance between our lips. I closed my eyes in anticipation, my fingers tightening imperceptible around her waist.

Instead of the feel of her lips on mine though, we were interrupted - once again - by Pooka. A cheerful bark pulled our attention down to him, where he held Anya's crown in his mouth, his tail wagging merrily behind him.

I sighed. In the heat and emotion of the moment, I had almost forgotten the life Anya stood to lose if she chose me. I took the crown from Pooka and we stood up. Staring at the beautiful tiara.

I held it out to her, my heart heavy. Princesses didn't marry kitchen boys. I needed to keep reminding myself of that if I was going to remain sane.

She slowly took the tiara, but she didn't put it on her head. She stood there regarding it for a moment before raising her eyes to mine.

I held her gaze for only a moment before dropping mine.

"They'll be waiting for you," I said, turning to walk away.

"Dimitri, wait!" she reached out and grabbed my hand before I could walk too far away.

I stopped but I didn't turn to face her. I couldn't. Defeat sagged my shoulders and bowed my head. Still I waited as she moved around so she was in front of me. She stood right in front of me and looked up at me, forcing me to look her in the eyes.

"We should talk about this," she said.

I frowned down at her.

"What's to talk about? You have a life and a family waiting for you, you've spent your whole life looking for them and dreaming about them, and its all right there!" I gestured in the direction of the palace.

"And you don't have anything to say to that? You've got nothing to say to me going in there and living my life? Without you?" she challenged me, the fire dancing in her eyes.

I closed mine in frustration.

"What could I possibly say?" I ask brokenly, "how can you possibly leave such a life of riches and luxury for me?"

"You did."

It was said so quietly that I nearly missed it. I looked down at her face, which was no longer staring up at me, challenging me, but was looking down, a blush staining her cheeks.

"What?" I ask, genuinely confused. I had lived my entire life in servitude or poverty. There was nothing I had given up for her.

"You didn't take the money. You gave up the possibility of a simple easy life. For me. Because you love me." The challenge was back in her voice and the fire back in her eyes.

I stare at her for a long moment, hardly daring to hope in what she is suggesting.

"Does that mean…" I trail off as she reaches up and traces my jawline ever so softly with her fingers.

"I was never much of a princess anyway,"

She reached up and pressed her lips firmly to mine, one hand around the back of my neck, the other around my waist.

Immediately I draw my arms around her and secure her tight against me, kissing her back like I had only dreamed of doing since I first saw her in the ballroom all those years ago.

I pulled back with a sudden thought.

"What about your grandmother?" I ask, looking down at her.

"I'll leave her a note. I'll have to return the tiara anyway."

"But you just found each other again," I argue.

"Then we'll find a place to live close by."

Her calm exasperates me a little. How can she be making such a huge life decision so easily?

"So that's it then? You are just up and not going to be a princess?" I challenge her.

"Yes." She comes back a little testily. This ground is familiar. I smile a little, knowing that wherever we go, however we manage, we will always have this. We are like to stubborn goats, always butting heads. My smile broadens and I decide to push it a little further.

"You are crazy you know that?"

Anya looks up at me angrily and pulls out of the embrace, stalking a few feet away before turning and firing at me with both barrels.

"_I'm_ crazy? What about you! You cook up an entire, completely flawed con to get some money and then you don't even take it!" she shouts, "you battle an animated stone horse for me, and then, when I tell you that I want to be with you, you argue and make me question my-"

I cut her off with a kiss. She is stiff for a moment before relaxing and sliding her arms around me.

"Anya, I love you," I say as we come apart.

She sighs and rests her head on my chest.

"That was all you needed to say," she replied.

* * *

><p>Returning the tiara and leaving a note for her grandmother took only a short time, and in no time at all we were making ourselves comfortable in our quarters on the boat. Our destination? A small village outside the city limits. We were going to start over. Find a small cottage, get jobs, get married, start a family.<p>

I stared down at the fiery redhead beside me. My heart bursting to the brim with love and gratitude – that she chose me, that she loves me back.

I squeezed her gently against my side

"We will argue, you know that," I tell her.

"No we wont," she replied, snuggled into me, eyes closed, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Yes we will."

"Not if you can just get it into your thick skull that you are not right about everything!" she fired back. Sitting up and away from me, shooting fiery darts at me with her eyes.

I smile. I love seeing her fiery. Maybe that's why I always push.

"Maybe not everything, but most things, including this."

"You are NOT right about this!"

"Oh really? What are we doing right now?"

She stops and glares at me. I smile down at her and get up, offering my hand, which she grudgingly accepts.

Despite the bickering, I hold her tight to my side, and she clings to me also. I lead her up to the top deck of the boat. It is a chilly night, so it is empty except for us. Anya shoots me a questioning look.

"We might argue a lot, but I have a solution," I explain as I take her hand and lead her to the front of the deck.

"Ok what is it?" she asks, watching me carefully.

"For every argument we have, we must dance."

I remove my jacket and bow deeply, extending my arm out in invitation.

She laughs in delight, and I decide right then and there, that her delight is even more beautiful than her fire.

She curtseys in response, discarding her own cloak and we spin around the deck, much like we had a few weeks ago, lost in each other's eyes. I spin her into me and she smiles before whispering.

"I think you owe me a LOT of dances!"

I laugh, and scoop her up, spinning us until I am almost too dizzy to stand, before lowering her down in front of me again.

She reaches behind my neck and as our lips meet I realize that I am the happiest I have ever been in my life.

Princesses aren't supposed to marry kitchen boys, but sometimes… sometimes they do anyway.

* * *

><p>KC<p> 


End file.
